Beautiful Spring weather motivated me to clean in my own “Meg-Sense” way. I busted out all the summer gear and yard equipment this week. In the process, my inner hippie found all kinds of energy connections and coincidences. I quite literally dug up love (a rock with L-O-V-E written on it) in the garden yesterday! I am feeling the SPRING ENERGY big time. I want to light up the SENSES as I embrace all things organic in cleaning our spaces. I still don’t want to clean my oven, but I have found myself doing many other things that “Meg-Sense” to me- LOL (I truly love puns, so hopefully you find joy in that sort of thing too).
I would say cleaning is not just about dirt, but about energy. We have the ability to increase our efficiency and transform energy through organizing stuff in more functional ways. There are opportunities in cleaning to create more positive surroundings by satisfying the senses. Focusing on the five senses is a fun, sort of hippie, way to think about cleaning.
Sound is THE most powerful cleansing tool according to Feng Shui. It may sound silly (LOL), but ringing bells or chimes is a wonderful way to move out anything stagnant in your space. I also enjoy listening to music and spending time giggling with my girls to brighten energy. Playing instruments, singing, or making other happy noises are all great ways to tune up sound.
Smell is closely linked to the parts of the brain that process emotion and memories, so having intentionality about scent can have a great impact. Using things like essential oils, candles, or other organics air fresheners in your home can be a fresh daily boost. Replacing furnace and air filters is another practical step in the smell category. I also recommend using fire/smoke occasionally. Burning herbs, like sage sticks (a popular hippie method), or having wood burning fires can help move out negative energy. Choose the scents that connect with you, and maybe try mixing things up to get rid of old stinks. Yesterday (right before I dug up the love rock), I built a fire in our backyard firepit and burned the pruning trash from my garden. I burned a mixture of oregano, lavender, and cedar. The fire smelled amazing and was powerfully cleansing.
Taste may not seem like a sense associated with cleaning your home, but it is! When you eat or drink refreshing things it boosts your energy, and you are arguably the most important part of your space. Citrus and other fresh fruits and vegetables are perfect for flavoring energy. I love to plant herbs, go to farmer’s markets, and try new recipes to keep my tastes seasoned (I just can’t help myself).
Touch is another crucial connection in the energy of an environment. As we transition seasons the things you feel can be adjusted. Changing the fabrics around your home to lighter weight textiles ushers in summer. I organized our closets and dressers to make summer clothes more prominent. I also switched to cooler bedding and more colorful table linens. I “woke up” our garden with touch by clearing the soil and pruning our plants, which opened up space for fresh growth. I enjoy the feeling of sweeping as a meditative way to improve barefoot touch.
Sight may seem like the most obvious cleaning sense, because it is generally the primary motivator to pick up and organize things. But sometimes things are hidden in plain sight. For example, windows and the dirt they accumulate slowly create optic fog. Windows are the eyes of your home, so washing windows and screens will clear visual energy.
For all the five senses, vinegar is a great tool to clean like a hippie. I use a combination of vinegar and salt to kill weeds. Vinegar can also wash windows, deodorize, dissolve dirt, soften fabric, cut grease, and much more. Okay! That wraps up another weekly article for this hippie chick. I hope you have fun “Meging-Sense” of your cleaning. Maybe next week, I will cool it on the puns…
Love Always,
Meg
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